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Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - May 2017

Here in my USDA Hardiness Zone 6a garden in central Indiana, we are enjoying a spring with plenty of rain, and the garden looks more lush and full every day.

Our average rainfall for May is just a few drops over two inches, and already we are well on our way to five inches or there abouts for the month. Yes, we are ahead on rainfall for the year so far, too.

Looking around the garden, I am no longer freaking out thinking we are weeks ahead. We may be a few days ahead of previous years but the startling sprint of early spring has slowed down quite a bit.

And it appears our last frost of the growing season is behind us now. That means it's time to plant out the warm season crops in the vegetable garden, prep and fluff the flower beds and switch out the violas and pansies for flowers that will withstand the hot days of summer.

Would you like to see some blooms? After you've seen the blooms, way down at the end of the post, you'll find the information on how you can participate in bloom day, too.

Ready.

Set.

Flowers!

My favorite columbine (Aquilegia sp.) is this little yellow one. Sorry about that streak of light across the middle of the picture.

This columbine color combo is more typical of the species, Aquilegia canadensis.

The columbines are blooming all over the garden in all sorts of colors, like this pretty white and purple combo.

This is the flower on Carolina Allspice, Calycanthus floridus.

No flowers yet on my new dogwood, planted last fall, Cornus kousa 'Summer Fun', but with foliage like that, who needs flowers?

Truly, I do not remember planting Ragged Robin, Lychnis flos-cuculi 'Jenny' but I am enjoying the blooms in a garden border planted with mostly late-summer bloomers.

I do remember planting this little rose, but have lost its tag and therefore its name. It was such a scrawny little snip when I planted it years ago. Nice to see it sizing up a bit.

Amsonia is in bloom. Blue Dog-Bane. Other than wanting to self sow around the garden, it is a nice plant to have because the foliage turns golden in the fall.

Peas are just starting to bloom. We are going to have peas to pick before long.

And some blackberries, too.

We have wisteria, too, the native wisteria, Wistera frutescens. I cut off the seed pods to keep it from showing up in places it ought not to be, like any other place in the garden other than the one post I gave it to grow up on.

Here's another plant that I'd grow just for the foliage. Symphytum x uplandicum 'Axminster Gold' or you can call it Variegated Comfrey.

Daisies. You've got to have ox-eye daisies that just show up randomly in the late spring garden. Leucanthemum vulgare will self-sow happily, and I let it because it is easy to pull out where I don't want it to grow.

Peonies. Our state flower, but not a native.

Here's a Baptisia. I think this one is 'Carolina Moonlight'.

May means perennial sages are in bloom, like the ubiquitous 'May Night'.

And we are starting to see more clematis, like this short stemmed Clematis integrifolia.

And this is the first bloom on Clematis 'Rooguchi'. It's not as pale a flower as this picture makes it appear to be.

Spiderwort, why doth thou invade my garden? Because I once planted it in my garden. Now I pull out Trandescantia sp. any chance I get because it would take over if I didn't. This one will get pulled out today.

Another Baptisia. Probably 'Purple Smoke'. Not for sure, though, so don't buy one based on this picture.

I do like my hardy ground orchids, Bletilla striata.

And a few Japanese-style irises that are showing up here and there, sort of randomly. Hmmm... who did that? Behind it you can see little white blooms on Sedum ternatum, which grows well in shade.

Geraniums, the true geraniums are in bloom now, too, like Geranium × cantabrigiense 'Biokovo' which acts as a ground cover.

This spring I also planted Geranium 'Rozanne' because I think they will look nice in the front garden.

Also in the front, it is almost time to say good-bye to the violas and pansies. I need to replace them with summer-loving plants.

Oh, and alliums are blooming now too, like this one in front of my new-to-me bird bath purchased at a garden fair last weekend.

And that's a bit of what's in bloom here in my garden. What's blooming in your garden today in the middle of May? We'd love to have you participate in Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day and show us.

It's easy to do. Just post on your blog about your blooms, then come here and leave a comment to tell us what you have to show us and then put a link in the Mr. Linky widget so we can come and see.

And remember the inspiration for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - "We can have flowers nearly every month of the year." ~ Elizabeth Lawrence

Comments

Your May garden is looking wonderful Carol and I love those Peony blooms! We have been getting a lot of rain for the month of May as well, but you seem of be a couple of weeks ahead of us here on Long Island, even though we are in the same zone. Thank you for hosting and as always...happy gardening!

I am envious of your rains, as we here don't even see the big clouds forming to make rains. And i pity your violas that are still flowering but will be taken out for other plantings. I love also those Baptisias, as i love mostly the blues and violets. We don't have those colors here.

Many thanks for hosting. Now I know where all our rain has gone. In April we had a few drops more than none!. Overall it is running at 50% of normal and is stating to have major impact for farmers. Some plants seem to like it. Day lilies are very lush with lots of leaf which does seem strange given the low rain but it has been hotter than normal.

I'm sorry - it's me again. The first link I posted was to April (I think I was number 8). I have now posted a link to May (number 10). I'm very sorry to be so useless and not to know where we are in the year. I really should have drunk my first cup of coffee of the day before going anywhere near a computer. Are you able to delete link number 8 please? I'm sorry to for the inconvenience.

It's May in May Dreams Gardens, hurrah! I'm amused to see the ox-eyed daisies in your garden, Carol as I have them here as well. They appeared from nowhere last year and I now have a couple of clumps in the garden, including my lawn! I'll be adding some of the flowers to the bouquet for my mum this week.

Hi Carol,your garden looks lovely! Your peonies are beautiful. I love peonies and have some in my garden too but I think that mine will still need some time till they open their buds. Your peas are already blooming. How wonderful! I also sowed some peas this year, but they aren´t blooming yet. In my garden the roses are starting to bloom at the moment and I am sharing some rose pictures on my blog today.Have fun gardening and thank you for hosting!Best wishes,Lisa

Thanks for hosting bloom day your favorite month of the year and I can see why. Ragged Robin 'Jenny" well I need to look that one up. I have Lychnis, which grows well here but of a different kind. I think it is Lychnis coronaria. And if you think you think you have had enough rain you can send it this way.

Your May garden is full of many kinds of bloom. Here in Massachusetts spring arrives later, and very slowly this cold and rainy spring. But there are blossoms. This is only the second spring with this new garden, but I am pretty happy and ready to start sharing. Thank you so much for Bloom Day.

No wonder you have May dreams! Your garden is full of blooms and the promise of more wonders of the summer to come. Interesting that your state flower is a non-native but what a lovely flower it is. Thank you for continuing to host GBBD! While you're worried about early heat, our temperatures in the pacific northwest continue to be below normal. While the danger of frost is past, we're still about 10 to 15 degrees cooler than normal for this time of year. The nice part of that is that some blooms are hanging on a bit longer and nearly daily rain means that we don't have to worry much about watering.

Happy GBBD! You have a lot of lovely blooms! It seems like everyone is further along in their growth than the PNW. We're very green here but not as many flowers as I'd like for this time of year. Our spring has been colder and even wetter than normal.

Your garden is lovely, as always! We're probably a good month or more ahead of you - summer is already nipping at our heels. I've already pulled my sweet peas and my ox-eye daisies and my Agapanthus have already got scouts out in preparation for their annual stampede. Thanks for hosting GBBD, Carol!

Hi Carol! I will take your 5 inches of rain..as we've just hit 12.7+ on May 13th. I think it's ranking in the top 2 wettest in Portland, Or since the 1930's? Crazy wet. I enjoyed your columbine pics! I fear mine are getting short changed this year due to the heavy rain. When you think of tropical rainstorms...think of Portland! lol

Interesting that we here in the PNW aren't the only ones getting a lot of rain. Sadly we're also way behind in our gardens because it's also been quite cold. Happy May Bloomday, it looks good in your garden!

As Danger Garden said, here in the Northwest corner of the nation we are behind in our spring. But cool temps have let the tulips and crabapple trees hold their blooms longer than usual, so there's always an upside (and a sweater). Thanks for hosting!

Hi Carol, your garden is looking beautiful and interesting to see that you have a lot in common with us here in the UK such as Aquilegia, Leucanthemum and peonies. I am quite new to blogging so haven't managed to link properly to my blog but have shared my own garden bloom day at carrotsandcalendula.co.uk best, Ciar

I think we are still about 1-2 weeks ahead of a "normal" Spring here - though things are starting to even out a bit. Looking forward to meeting up many of you fellow Garden Bloggers at the GB Fling in June here in DC/VA/MD!

For this Bloom Day I decided to focus on the new native plants I added to my garden. I might be a month behind you here and I'm enjoying a preview in your garden of what will be in my garden in the future!

Good morning Carol,I am for the first time at your blog. It is so great to see what is blooming all over the world. Springtemperatures finaly arrived also in my little garden in Holland. Your garden is bringing a lot of beautiful flowers. Thanks for sharing.Rosehugs Marijke.

It's a joy each month to come here and see what's blooming in a climate so different from mine in Portland. This spring the weather has been very cool and wet so our blossoms have held better than in warmer years. Nevertheless, I am ready for some warm (not hot - yet) dry weather for all my summer-loving plants.

A bit late to the game this month! Our spring has been extra cool and rainy (or last year's was ahead--still haven't quite decided which.) In any case, we're a good 2 weeks behind what was blooming last year...which I know because of these Bloom Day posts.

I'm late! My post was a bit spur of the moment, so therefore a bit less organized and complete than yours. I love all your blooms, they are so traditionally Spring! Thanks for hosting GBBD, and bringing us all together to celebrate flowers!

Carol, I'm always amazed by how much is happening in your garden in May, when almost none of my garden perennials have begun to bloom. It's delightful to see all your lush blooms, which are a preview of what I'll have to show next month. Somehow, though, I'll catch up with you by July. Thanks again for hosting this delightful monthly gathering. -Jean